The End Of The Line
by Raidou The 16th
Summary: Strange things have been happening on Tokyo. Three incidents have taken some lives, and are still a mystery to those looking into them. Come inside and look into the fate of the ones caught up in this madness. OC heavy, last episode of mine and Nightly 7's expanded series. R&R, enjoy.
1. Freed From This Lightning Dream

**Hey, y'all! New fic! New plot, new purpose, new characters, new everything. Best part? Writing for the heck of it. \o/ No, this is not a persona 5 assumption. Anyway, I don't own anything, read at your own discord. I honestly don't expect you to finish reading much less review, but... please...? Asking doesn't hurt, right? So, here's the deal. This is the last arc of this expanded persona series that me and Nightly 7 are doing. It involves Persona 3: Blood Lust and Persona 4: The Chaos Within, along with two other fics that have yet to be written. This clears out mysteries regarding both of these fics, as it explains a bit about the origin of this whole expanded arc. Okay, enough banter, on with it.**

* * *

"Don't you dare turn to look back!" I almost barked the words into the microphone as the song demanded it and hit the last power chords, bringing the music to a close. The whole band halted at the exact time, for a change. The crowd roared and clapped and did whatever they did when they cheered every time after a faster song. That ended well.

"Thank, you Tokyo, you're awesome!" I shouted. The people were still cheering out loud. That was a good feeling. We were not even headlining and we'd be able to fit in a little encore. Things were going well.

I looked back at our drummer, the brown haired young kid behind the kit, who gave me a thumbs up. He was good and had some incredible stamina. Maybe I should talk to him after the gig, see if he's interested.

Then I glanced at my friend on the bass, who had a sweaty forehead, but still had a smile on his face. He was up for it.

The lead... he was going to play it, whether he liked it or not. Not like I cared. If he was in it for the money, he was gonna earn it.

"Well..." I adjusted the mic's height before running a hand through my hair to style it back again. Damn, it felt good to be back. "This is the part of the show where we get to have some fun, pay a little tribute to some of our heroes. Get ready," I briefly trailed off to adjust the tone. "To Ride The Lightning!"

As the crowd roared once again, the drummer gave the cue and we began the intro. I stepped away from the mic and glanced at the stage: The baseball stadium had a net of steel wires covering the whole stage, something prepared for the main show. They did warn us that it was going to be activated at least once before the main attraction, which sadly was not us. I noticed that some sparks and tendrils of electricity began running around through the net sporadically. Awesome! That was gonna add millions to the song.

Intro was almost done, so I stepped onto the mic and waited for the time to sing my lines. "Guilty as charged, but damn it, it ain't right! There's someone else controlling me!"

I turned my face away and spit on the ground next to me. Not out of disrespect, or anything. My mouth was watering really fast, I was getting tired. "Death's in the air! Strapped in the electric chair! This can't be happening to me!"

Fast key change, I leaned back a bit and looked at my friend. He was getting into it. Of course he was. I smirked and came back to the mic. "Who made you God to say, 'I'll take your life from you'?"

"Flash! Before! My eyes! Now! It's time to die!" A slight pause for the vocals and the chorus went on. Hell if the song wasn't fun to play. "Burning in my brain! I can feel the flame!"

Last bit of the chorus before the second verse. I gave a brief look at the people by my side. They were hanging in there fine. And by the sound of things, the kid in the back was doing great, too. I shook my head to get the hair away from my eyes and went back to sing. "Wait for the sign! To flick the switch of death! It's the beginning of the end... Sweat chilling cold, as someone's death unfolds! Consciousness my only friend! My fingers grip with fear! What am I doing here?"

And the chorus again. "Flash! Before! My eyes!" I sang before turning the mic towards the crowd. And they'd learned it! Well, most of them. Okay, maybe half of them. I did hear the lyrics clearly for them, and that was enough for me. I turned the mic back to me for the last line. "I can feel the flame..." I extended the words a bit for the beginning of the faster instrumental part, before I left the mic and walked towards my friend. He was rocking it, and the sparks up there only picked up. Man, that was perfect. I couldn't help but bob my head a few times to the beat.

I motioned for him to exchange mics with me, so I'd take the one to the left of the stage while he'd be on the center, where I was. He nodded and we switched places. I got to his stand just in time to begin singing again.

"Someone help me! Oh, please, God, help me! They're trying to take it all away..." I sang. Now was the part where me and him doubled up the vocals. I only had time to look briefly at the crowd and spot only one person who was not really into it. Eh... maybe someone had dragged him to our show, or he was waiting for the next band. Regardless, I kept on playing, but kept my eyes on that dude... he had raised his hand, for some reason.

"I! Don't want! To di-"

We were interrupted by a blinding light, then the sound of thunder really, really next to us. The feedback afterwards was so loud, it raped my ears. I look to the side to see if people were okay, but...

My friend had fallen to the ground and was twitching frantically, not to mention his charred clothes and skin.

What the Hell?!

No, no, not again...

I stopped playing immediately, unstrapped my guitar, threw it to the side and broke off into a run to his side.

"Riick!" I stopped and knelt by his side. "Get a damn doctor up in here, call an ambulance, something! Damn it!" I just stayed by his side... I didn't know anything about about first aid... or how to heal someone who had just been electrocuted, for Christ's sake!

The drummer had run off to call for help, the lead just stood there, stupefied, while the crowd screamed in terror.

I just sat there, frying my brain trying to think of what to do. But in the end I didn't come up with nothing until the ambulance came... or rather, when it was too late...

...

...

"The most recent act of terrorism has taken the life of heavy metal band 'Deadman''s bassist, Rick Kennedy. He was stricken by a bolt of lightning during the band's show, seemingly due to sabotage of one of the stage attractions for the festival's headlining band. Police are looking into further details, and we will keep you updated as the case develops. This is the third act in Tokyo, and likely the one to have taken the least amount of lives..."

The broadcast went on the big screen as the two boys kept on walking towards school.

"Run that by me again...? The guy was struck by a bolt of lightning right in front of you?" The black haired taller boy asked.

"Yeah, man! It was crazy! It all happened in the blink of an eye: The guy was up there, doing the backing vocals and suddenly boom! The bolt strikes and he's sent straight to the ground. I froze up and dropped the sticks right there and then. What really woke me up was Chris' voice demanding me to go get help. I ran to get help, but the roadies were already on it. The ambulance came shortly after that, and so did the cops. I was taken in or questioning, but I was scared shitless... they released me once they realized I knew nothing." The brown haired shorter boy replied before fixing his glasses.

"Damn... sorry to have asked you so many times, Kei... it's just that it's so unbelievable... I feel bad for you, man."

"Relax, Eiji. I'm still alive and well. I just hope Chris is okay... he and Rick were so cool, letting me join... I don't know when I'll meet people like that again." Kei replied, casting his eyes down.

After a moment of silence, Eiji spoke once more. "First the fire in the art gallery... then the blackout in the theater... now this. I dunno whether I want to leave home at all..."

"Yeah... things are dangerous around here. But still school refuses to give us a break... let's just stop talking about that, okay? I just want to look forward to the clubs, get my head off all this..."

The two continued their walk towards the school in silence with slumped shoulders in the midst of the numerous people murmuring things about the recent incidents. They soon reached the gates of Kishin high. They still had to deal with school...

The two sighed before entering the campus.

* * *

 **Aaaand first chapter's done. Some incidents are happening in Tokyo, things are screwed up. The song in the first part is Ride The Lightning, by Metallica, which I obviously do not own, before I someone sues me or anything. Anyway, If you do get to finish reading it and feel like saying what you think about the story, review box is down below. I'm Raidou the 16th. See you next time, whatever I write next.**


	2. Drift Away, Fade Away

**Sup? Back with this.**

 **I don't anything, blablabla, please don't sue me, read, enjoy it, on with it.**

* * *

"Okay, time to split you all into pairs. Uchida!" The coach called out, his booming voice rang throughout the gym. "You're pairing up with Tamada!"

Eiji straightened himself up and replied. "Yes, sensei!"

With only his eyes, he followed the coach walking away to form other pairs before sighing, then turning towards his sparring partner for the day. "Let's go, Tamada-kun," he said and took his stance, constantly hopping an inch or two off the ground and with his guard high up.

Classes had ended and Eiji went to attend the school's Tae Kwondo club. Joining a club was free... surely cost less than going out to eat, or doing anything else in the country's capital. So for the last two years he'd spent most of his afternoons hanging around at school. Not like he had anything better or less expensive to do...

C'est la vie, he guessed. His parents could only do so much for him from so far away.

With a step forward, he feinted an advance, which made his partner flinch, but chose not to move in for the attack. Perhaps having more time to see what Tamada was going to do was better, counterattack and whatnot.

Keeping calm all the way, he watched as his partner raised his right leg to try and reach for his helmet. A simple sway back and the kick was avoided.

Oh, look, he left his right side was open.

Round kick.

Bam, straight to its mark. Point. Don't forget to hop back, aaand we're golden. Tamada always had trouble keeping his balance and stance after a kick... it was just the work of taking advantage of that.

... Or Eiji could help him get rid of that tiny problem.

Eh. Why not?

After motioning a 'time out', he threw a demonstrative high kick. "Hey, when you raise your leg, don't spin with just your ankle. Try to adjust your foot, as well. Throw your hip into the kick, too, and try to keep your guard," He showed how his arms were trying to cover his ribs and chin. "See? That way you'll have more balance, you'll get a bit more time to react after a kick, it'll come out stronger and faster. Here, try." He lifted a hand in front of himself, establishing a target for his partner, who nodded and wound up...

Ouch... he forgot how strong he was. The kick actually hurt his hand a bit, but nothing he couldn't bite back.

Hm... stance was more correct than before, kick was faster... good enough for an improvement on the first try. "Yeah, you're starting to get it. Just keep those tips in mind and you'll be far less open to counters and yellings from sensei." He joked, earning a chuckle.

With a small smile, he took his stance again. "Okay, let's start again."

...

...

"Alright, enough of talking about that. Let's just get on with this. What are we playing last?" Kei said as he picked two sticks from the holsters and sat behind the kit. "Don't really feel like sweating anymore today, so... take it easy. Y'all know we got places to go," he said before striking the cymbal once.

"I dunno... how about Dyers Eve?" Said the lead singer with a smug smirk on her face, not even bothering to get the raven fringe away from her eyes. Maybe because she had her hands busy practicing a solo on her unplugged guitar.

"Oh, shove the mic, Yoko." Kei replied with a shake of his hand and the girl laughed. Playing Dyers freaking Eve. Yeah, right. "Something that doesn't wreck my legs, please. Walk, maybe?"

"Could be, but... meh, a bit too boring. I feel like going a bit less groovy than that, but I can't quite decide on something..." said Kenji, supporting his elbows on the bass strapped on his shoulder. That thing was strapped really, really low... it was almost fully below his waist. "I know. Addicted To Chaos?" He suggested, adjusting his beanie.

"Kenji, my man! Perfect. Yoko, you down?" Kei asked. The girl looked up briefly, as if trying to remember the song for a moment before nodding and plugging her guitar to the amp. "Alright, this one's for Rick."

The three of them had gone to Deadman's meet and greet two days ago, where they had the luckiest of breaks: They were chosen to jam a few minutes with Chris freaking Harris, the band's lead singer and rhythm guitarist. Kei was the luckiest of them and got to play with the band later, but luck was a debatable concept, granted what happened. The three of them were shook by the tragedy, but were trying their best to move on with their lives. Which wasn't really helped by the fact that they were invited to attend Rick's funeral. That'd be the last song before they got ready to make their way there. "Go!"

He beat on the ride four times before starting the intro, which was mostly only drums. The beat quickly got to him and had him bobbing his head, and before long the two joined him and started the song. The three had a good chemistry going on, even though it always felt as if there was one member missing. And there was: They had no rhythm player, but that was fine.

Kenji and Yoko were his friends from music club since first year. Since no one else really seemed to like their style, they dropped out of the school's club and decided to form a band. The former picked the interest from his father, who had a garage and was glad to let the kids borrow it to make some noise. The girl already had a guitar and both string players had amps, so all that was left was for Kei to buy a kit. And he did, after some months of part time jobs. After that, almost every afternoon was spent playing with his friends, when he wasn't hanging out with Eiji. Which wasn't exactly often, even though the two were friends for quite a long time.

"Only yesterday they told me you were gone. All these normal people, will I find another one?" Yoko began singing. She sang well. Plus, she was a girl: she could reach some high notes, when she put her mind into it.

Kenji was plucking away at the strings of his bass, trying to look cool. Kei swore he'd throw his back out one of those days: that thing was strapped too damn low. But he was playing well. Missing a few notes, but bass, so everything was cool.

The girl quit singing after the first verse and kept playing the instrumentals. The song quickly filled the room and dropped the mood a bit. It was easy to feel the song when it was talking about losing a friend, under the current circumstances.

...

...

'My condolences, Kenichi. I'm sorry for your loss: I know this must be hard for you and I would like to be there for you in this time of need, but unfortunately, I am busy right now. Do know that I and everyone else feel deeply for you. You're not alone.

Regards,

Ohatsu'

Chris read the message before pocketing his phone. Of course he was not alone, no matter where he was, but...

He was tired of losing people close to him.

With a sigh, he closed his eyes before exhaling shakily. He was trying really hard to not let the knots in his throat untie themselves into sobs. Rick had been a great friend... They'd been together since Ireland... the very beginning of the band. It must have been what? 6 years, now? He shook his head.

Rick had been the one to extend a hand to him when everyone was far away from him. Or rather, when he pushed everyone away. But he was there, offering him a new chance. Since then it'd all been so well and fine...

Until everything ended in one crooked bolt of lightning.

All that in the first time he comes back to his home country after years.

The oblong box in front of him was all covered in flowers. At the moment he was the only one still near the place. The media was not allowed into the place, and he had talked to everyone who had business with him. He was having a moment alone with his longtime friend. Not only with him, but the others, too.

He took a deep breath and looked to the side.

Oh, the drummer kid and his friends arrived. There was one he didn't recognize, though.

"Hello, Chris." The drummer, Kei greeted. The others were downtrodden, maybe they decided only one greeting was enough. "This is my friend, Eiji."

The boy extended a hand. "It's an honor to meet you, Mr. Harris. I'm sorry for your loss."

The blond older man took the hand and shook it. Huh, he went straight for a handshake. Either the foreigner look was working, or he wasn't exactly known around those parts. "Thank you." He didn't mind that the kid extended the invitation: at least he didn't bring a thousand people along.

The girl and the grey haired kid holding a beanie walk over to Rick's place with flowers and black bandannas on hands to pay their respects while I kept talking to Eiji and Kei. They asked him about all sorts of things: from my friendship with Rick, to the band's future. The former seemed like a well behaved kid, calm and collected. It was clear that he didn't know much, but he was showing respect.

As much as he'd like to reply accordingly and do justice to the respect and condolences, his mind was far, far away. As the kids took turns asking questions and talking to him, he answered absently as his memory took him places.

The small church's walls shifted and turned in his mind. The place got bigger, and the oblong box came closer to him, showing a face not Rick's. Pale, cold skin, the same dark brown eyes as his own, short, dark brown hair...

Jin...

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of thunder coming from outside the church. It was close, as well.

... But it wasn't even raining. at least he didn't remember if it was.

"What was that?!" "What the Hell?" "What's going on?" Was what most of the united voices of the kids and few people that were there said.

It was then that Chris felt a small stirring.

... It couldn't be.

No, no, no, no!

"Hey, Chris, what's happening?!" He rushed out of the church's door, paying little mind to the kids following him.

"... Oh, crap..." he trailed off as he looked outside.

People were running out through the cemetery gates, away from the hooded person walking towards the church.

And the monster floating behind steadily behind them. Sparks clacked between their fingers, both the person's and the creature's as they approached.

"Time to finish what I started! Indra!"

"Ziodyne!"

* * *

 **That's done.**

 **LoneWolf685: Hahahahahahah HipsterHitler. *wipes tear* I know people aren't that much into OC stories. Hell, I'm not, either, but this idea was a bit fun for to think about and write, so... here it is. Tadah...? *opens arms awkwardly* Thanks for the compliments, hope you enjoy it. And yes, 'Tallica has that power.**

 **Songs mentioned/Used: Walk, by Pantera; Dyers Eve, by Metallica; Addicted To Chaos, by Megadeth.**

 **It's late as Hell I'm sleepy af I'm gonna crash please review I'm Raidou I approve this message *thumbs up* Thank you, goodnight! *waves***


	3. Your Face Is Scarred With Steel

The brown skinned monster behind the hooded figure, presumably called Indra, condensed the sparks dancing around its body into a sphere of lightning, then shot it up to the sky. It came down briefly after and would hit Chris had he not hurriedly hopped out of the way.

That couldn't be! A Persona? At that time of the day?!

With a bit of hesitation, he raised his guard as the person rushed towards him brandishing two knives after the creature disappeared into shattered blue glass. Their steps were quick, hasty and furious, but it surely seemed they didn't have a clear target... or the hood was making it hard for Chris to judge their focus. But trust in his instincts he would.

He let them get into striking distance, and a stab was coming, aimed for his face. A weave to the side, and Chris' head was out of the attack's way. If he was right, the other knife should've been making its way towards his neck or face, at the moment.

After he ducked down low, he heard the sound of the knife cutting the air above his head. Just as he thought, the person wasn't a world class knife fighter. But he was still at a big disadvantage at the moment, he'd have to fight well and fight to knock out. Gritting his teeth, he came back up with an uppercut to the person's chin. It connected, knocking them a few centimeters in the air, before he smashed a chopping left aimed to their nose, which sent them staggering back.

They held their nose in pain as they fell back, and Chris was about to give chase when he heard shouts coming from behind him.

"Chris!"

"Kei, are you insane?!" "Kei!" "Don't do it, dammit!"

He looked back to see what was happening and saw the drummer kid rushing towards him, along with the other one, chasing after him along with the other two teens, but the girl and the grey haired one were falling behind.

What the Hell?! Did he intend to fight that guy?!

And then he felt lightning striking at his back.

"Agh!" he cried in pain and tumbled forward, falling to one knee.

The brown haired dru- Kei rushed past him a moment after his knee touched the ground, as as he did, Chris felt the stirring once again. The one still chasing after him, Eiji passed by, as well, soon followed by the others.

But that feeling...

Blinded in rage, Kei charged ahead to meet the hooded person, his fist ready to tear a hole into their face. As soon as he came close, he released his right fist with all of his might, but the person side stepped and slammed a knee on his stomach, which was only made stronger by the momentum of the missed punch. The brown haired boy doubled over, his glasses fell from his face. The person followed up with a slash of their knife aimed to his face, which missed his right eye by a mere centimeter and opened a wound that stretched until the bridge of his nose.

"Kei!" Eiji, who was already on the chase took his feet off the ground to hit a flying back kick on the person's face. He could never pack that much strength into it, but it was useful for pushing people back. And it did, this time it even managed to knock them down. Immediately after, he held his wounded friend on a full nelson and dragged him back.

"Let me go, dammit!" He yelled, trying to break free from Eiji's hold.

"Are you retarded?! That guy'll kill you!"

"Get the Hell back in the church!" Chris roared as he stood up. "I can take him on!"

"At least let us help, Ch-"

"Go!" He blared at Kei. And the other kids in general. Most of them nodded and fell back.

The hooded person got up and dusted themselves off. The only thing Chris could make out of their face were the bared gritted teeth as they brandished their knives again and let tendrils of electricity run from their arms to their weapons, imbuing them with thunder.

That'd be a problem...

He briefly looked around himself: All he could see were gravestones. Not much he could use to his advantage... even the lampposts were too big for him to use, and were made of metal. A no no against electricity. His knuckles alone would have to do.

Bracing himself, Chris raised his guard once more and focused hard, ready to face the person's charge.

As his eyes narrowed, he could feel something... he felt sharper, lighter... but he felt the rush overcome his whole body, instead of just his hands or arms as was usual for him.

Perhaps he had a chance.

...

...

"What the Hell were you thinking, you idiot?! You could have gotten yourself killed!" Eiji yelled at Kei's face.

"Chris was facing the dude alone and that monster, what did you expect me to do, man?"

"Oh, I don't know, not try assisted suicide?" Yoko was the one to pitch in. "I know you were worried. We all are. But-"

"But what?! You're just gonna lie down and let him die when we could be helping him against that guy?!"

"Dude, you're not seeing the points here," more concerned than annoyed, Kenji intervened. "You almost lost a freaking eye out there, and the dude didn't break a sweat! What's more, Chris was still standing, and wasn't hurt when we got there. And what scares me the most: he took that lightning bolt head on and just tumbled forward... He's still there, when one of the same kind did that!" He pointed towards Rick's coffin. "I think we'd just slow him down. What I'm saying is that if Chris is still there, he can win against that guy. I mean... the man might be superhuman..."

"And you were lucky I landed that kick. What'd happen if you stayed down there? Huh? Would we have to bury you right there where you were?" Eiji stated before sighing. "Dammit, we should be heading to the hospital, you're bleeding... do any of you have any bandages, or anything of the sort?"

Both Yoko and Kenji searched their belongings, but found nothing helpful.

"I'm fine, man, I won't die from this!" Kei said as he stood up with a wince. He couldn't say it didn't hurt. "The worst that happened to me is that I lost my glasses..."

Sound of thunder could be heard outside.

"Crap..."

Eiji furrowed his eyebrows and looked around at everyone: Yoko was biting her lip, Kei was pacing back and forth and Kenji was trying his best to keep calm and rationalize things, but it was clear by his entwining fingers that he couldn't exactly wrap his mind around the absurdity of the situation. He managed to put into words what was happening earlier, but it seemed even he himself didn't believe what he said. Perhaps he was the most affected of the four of them? He didn't know.

To be honest, Eiji wasn't exactly at his calmest, at that moment, either. So much was going on, he couldn't compute everything. He just knew that he could, somehow, help Kei out there. He didn't need to understand what was happening, he just needed to know his friend was alive and well.

"Agh!"

The door was slammed open with the impact of someone crashing back first into it from outside. And that someone was Chris, who had been sent flying, but wasted no time rolling back to his feet. He wiped the blood off his face using his wrist before taking a stance...

And readying his knife...?

As the hooded person walked into the church pulling his hood back on, the teens almost subconsciously gathered in a corner.

"Give that back!" The person yelled as they pointed one knife towards Chris.

"Come and get it!" The blond rocker taunted them with two fingers. He was right, their ability with a knife was not top notch, but dammit were they fast. He was lucky he managed to floor them once, but God knew how many more lightning bolts he could take if he got too close.

The plan would be to push them back out of the church before they got any ideas. Good thing they were pissed as Hell.

With a grunt, Chris rushed forward and attempted a quick thrust aimed for their face, but as expected they sidestepped and tried to reply with a slash aiming to kill. Aimed where, though, would be up to his reflexes.

He chose to tighten the grip on his knife and swipe it to the side, trying to parry a slash that'd be aimed for his throat and he was right. The strength of the parry alone threw them off guard, leaving their face open for the hay maker that followed.

The punch pushed them back towards the open door and knocked them down, but Chris now knew putting them on a hold was not a good idea. A quick taunt to keep their head on the fight. "Who the Hell sent such an incompetent bastard to get rid of me? Answer me!"

"Like I'll tell you, asshole!" They got up and pocketed his knife before a blue circle appeared under him. His persona appeared behind him an instant later, and sparks began to cackle between the master and the puppet.

At that point, the teens tensed up even further, some with fear, some with anger, some with anxiety. Eiji took the front of the bunch while Kei tried to wrestle past his friend, but was restrained by Kenji and Yoko.

And Chris was still frying his brain. If he was right, that'd be a fully charged attack aimed at him. No mistaking it, they were furious and he had taunted them enough. And if it was fully charged, he'd have time to try and stop the attack, if he was quick enough. And quick he tried to be, haste on his steps as he charged ahead, aiming a knife to the right side of their chest. As much as he didn't want to kill them, they'd have to be stopped at that moment.

When he got within striking distance, all he had to do was thrust his knife forward...

To hit nothing.

The person had gotten out of the way in the blink of an eye.

Or rather, in a tendril of lightning.

When Chris looked back, the person was walking towards the kids, panting hard.

What the Hell just happened?!

Eiji grit is teeth and looked frantically from side to side, but noticed that Kei had stopped struggling. The guy was getting closer...what to do, what to do...?

"Scatter!" He yelled as he took Yoko's wrist and ran alongside the wall, hoping the rest would do the same.

Kenji ran the other way, dodging the coffin stand on his way.

Kei was still bent on confronting the guy. He wasn't afraid of the guy whose face was exposed, at that moment: He had a cross shaped scar on his forehead, very short, messy brown hair, and seemed to have two eyes of different colors, one blue and the other yellow. The pain and blood on his own face were not enough to discourage him, and he stood his guard with a scowl, waiting for the guy to attack him. He saw what Chris was doing, he just had to pay attention to his movements.

As the guy came closer and tried to reach for his throat with one hand, he slapped the hand away with one arm and threw a punch to the guy's face, which made his face turn away. But it wasn't long before the guy replied with a punch of his own, which stunned the boy and gave him an opportunity to grab him on a choke hold before turning around.

To come almost face to face with Chris, who had been advancing quietly since he blinked out of the way of the knife.

The quickest thing to do was to raise his knife to Kei's throat, which halted the taller man on his tracks. "Ah, ah, ah... don't take another step."

Still frustrated by his failures, Chris grit his teeth and took one step back. "Another one," the guy demanded. He was forced to oblige.

"Slide my knife over." He kept ordering between pants. A vein had noticeably popped on his forehead.

Chris thought hard about his next move. Would giving him the knife be the right choice? He could try a throw, but he was not that confident on his aim... not exactly his aim, he knew where to throw the knife, he just wasn't sure about his precision.

He looked behind himself: Eiji was holding Yoko, maybe not to let her do anything rash, and Kenji was doing his best to not do anything rash, himself.

The stirring he felt before rang in his ears again. And it began to pulsate.

He turned back towards Kei and the guy.

Could it be...?

"Slide my knife over, dammit! Are you deaf?!" He ordered again. His voice was overly raspy and cracked for a second. "Or else this kid is dead!"

Kei bared his teeth and tried to escape the guy's grip, but it was no use. "Let me go!" He shouted, but was ignored. And that only fed his anger. "Throw the knife at this freak's head, Chri-"

"Don't even think about it." The scarred young man tightened his hold on Kei's throat, cutting his words short. He struggled and even clawed at the guy's arm, but it was no use.

Or was it...?

Chris looked at the struggling teen's eyes for a moment before getting down on one knee and sliding the knife over. As he did, he could hear a muffled 'Noooo'.

One of the biggest bets of his life, but he'd risk it.

The guy stepped on the knife to stop its momentum before reaching into his pocket. He brought out a green crystal. His eyes were already bloodshot and he was getting redder by the second. "I'm going to take this kid with me. If you want him back, meet me alone a-"

It was then that Chris heard the ringing in his ears intensify once more.

As Kei continued to dig his nails into the captor's arm, he felt something snap inside him. All he knew was that the guy finally released him with a yell of pain, and that he had to seize that opportunity.

As soon as his heels touched the ground, he spun around and gathered all of his might into a chopping right aimed to the guy's nose, which sent him crashing back into the wall. He didn't know where that strength came from, but it didn't matter for him, at the moment.

The teens looked with mouths agape at the scene. How in the Hell...?

Chris was surprised at the fact that he was right. There was a lot he didn't understand, at that moment... those questions needed answer.

Panting and extremely tired, for some reason, Kei walked towards the downed young man, each step heavier than his last. The guy was struggling to get back to his feet, but that wasn't working. All he could do was grab another green crystal out of his coat, only to close his eyes before crushing it in his hand.

The crystal emitted a blindingly bright light, which made everyone shield their eyes.

When the light died down, the guy wasn't there, anymore.

But what was still there were the flames on Kei's hands.

He finally looked at his hands before going quiet for a moment. His head began to feel lighter.

"Holy shit..."

Were his last words before he fainted.

* * *

 **Well, that's done. Took a while. Anyway, same old. Review box there, Raidou here, approving this message *thumb up*. Not much else to say, aside from the usual disclaimers that- bah, screw it. Later, yo.**


	4. I'd Rather Die Behind The Wheel

**Back. Sup. Disclaimers.**

* * *

"Kei..."

The boy heard in the distance. When he opened his eyes, all he saw was white: north, east, south, west... all white. He didn't even know if he was upside down.

In fact, he wasn't sure he felt himself at all.

Where was he...?

"Kei..." the voice called out to him once more.

He didn't know where it came from, but felt compelled to drift towards it, no matter where it was.

Eventually, he began to see a faint silhouette in the white. A weird, humanoid stood before him, but he couldn't make out any details past that.

'who goes there...' he thought silently in his mind. No words came through his mouth as he, well... he didn't seem to have a mouth.

"I am everything you want to be. Come. Take my hand and become one with me." The thing in the distance offered.

Kei simply followed the voice and drifted on, coming closer and closer to the thing, which was becoming more and more human by the second. Their presence was warm... he felt his own soul becoming engulfed by some kind of heat as he approached...

"Kei!"

...

...

The boy shot up instantly with a scare. He inhaled deeply before looking frantically from side to side.

"Calm down, Kei... You're fine." Eiji put a hand on his shoulder. "You're fine, dude."

Kei still took a few seconds to stop hyperventilating. He looked around with a bit of attention, and saw that he was in a place he didn't recognize. It was a room... a rather nice room. Everyone was there: Eiji, Yoko, Kenji... even Chris.

"Oh, you're awake, finally." The older man spoke from his chair across the room. "How do you feel?"

"Lost..." Was the first thing that Kei said, almost instantly after Chris finished speaking. Which was funny: he didn't even need to think to answer that, even though he was pretty sure he never said that he was lost even once in his life. That shouldn't have come so naturally to him.

"Heh... at least that didn't change." The blond rocker mused aloud. What didn't change...?

"Is he gonna be fine, Chris?" "Yeah, I wanna know..." Kenji and Yoko asked.

"I'm pretty sure he will. Hey, kid, what's the last thing you remember?"

"I, uhh..." Kei lost his words for a bit, as he remembered that weird dream he had. At least he assumed it was a dream... It took him a second to remember what he was supposed to say. "We were at the funeral... That guy crashed in, we tried to help and he... I..." He took a hand to his forehead and felt the stitches in his face as the scene flashed in his mind. Just remembering the absurdities that happened caused a migraine. "You guys saved me... I had fire in my hands, too. I don't know what the Hell is going on..."

Eiji looked at his friend as he ran both hands down his face and sighed painfully. He couldn't possibly understand what the guy was feeling...

"Relax. Give it some time. I know how that feels. You're in my room, by the way, which means you shouldn't hesitate to ask for anything. I'll get you some water, be right back." Chris said as he got up and left the room.

Silence filled the room for a few moments. No one knew what to say.

"Hey, guys..." Kei broke the silence. "What exactly happened?" He could try to piece the flashes together, but he was afraid his head would ache again.

"The guy entered the church and managed to catch you... Your hands suddenly lit on fire, you broke from the guy's grip and then you punched him square in the face... he broke some kind of crystal and went away. Chris took us here and treated you. We've been waiting for you to come around since then..." Yoko explained. She was also nervous.

"Huh..." the brunette lowered his head a bit. "What do we do, now...?"

"I have no idea... Actually I do. We wait for you to get better. That sounds like a plan, to me." Eiji said.

"Yeah, that's actually a good idea." Kenji agreed as he got up from his seat. "Imma just call dad real quick and tell him we're fine." He left the room.

The three remaining kids watched as their friend left the room, only to go back to silence after the door closed behind Kenji. One eventually looked at the other, but averted their gaze almost immediately after eye contact was made. Yoko, in special was darting her eyes back and forward between the two.

The door opened once more, and in came Chris with a tall glass of water. "Drink up." He said as he gave it to Kei and took his seat.

No need to tell him twice. The brunette downed the water without even pausing to breathe. He was that thirsty.

The cold water worked almost like oil to his brain's gears. As he cooled off a bit, he remembered the torrent of questions that still needed answers, but he figured he'd be calm enough to ask them one by one.

"So, uh, Chris...?" He began.

"Spit it."

"Who was that guy? The one with the hood and the scar, I mean... And what was that monster he controlled?"

Yeah, he wasn't as calm as he thought he was. But he was close...

The rocker looked away. "I've no idea... Never saw that guy before. As for that monster..." He thought for a while. "I also dunno... sorry."

Yoko and Eiji looked at him with doubt.

"You fought him like you knew what you were doing, though..."

"Never mind that... you took a lightning bolt dead on."

"Yeah! What was that...?"

"I don't mean to disrespect, but... what are you?" The two asked question after question, without giving the man time to answer or think.

"Guys, calm down..." The last thing Chris wanted was to have the kids caught up on all that. That something he had to take care of himself... whatever was happening.

"Yeah... you were even winning against that guy... you even read him like a book when you fought him." Kei was the one to ask.

The rocker looked at the three of them, as the Kenji came back. "Called him. He now knows that we're fine. I thought the man was gonna have a heart attack, for a while." The boy said as he ruffled his silver hair, before he noticed the atmosphere in the room. "Uh..."

"Look... it's complicated..." Chris continued. "I want you kids to stay safe, nothing else matters to me. And that means you should stay away... as much as I hate keeping you in the dark, I really want you to stay outta trouble."

"The guy was gonna kidnap me, Chris! He almost sliced my face in half! I need to know!" Kei almost yelled. Really, that was... "I have the right to know." He just wanted answers.

The older man averted his gaze from the kids and sighed. "Alright... You see, that guy had a power called 'Persona', which allowed him to call that monster. I dunno that guy, I dunno what he was after... I just know that."

... Persona...? Eiji rubbed his chin.

And that was true. All else were just assumptions he had. But one of them was almost clear to him: that guy had a big part in Rick's death. Perhaps he had been the target all along. He did say that he wanted to finish what he'd started...

Sigh... it was too much for his mind to take in just a few days.

"And how do you know that?" Kenji's interest was instantly picked.

"I've seen a few of those before, and I know how dangerous they can be. Which is why I want you all to stay out of this."

"But you kicked that guy's ass! Why can't we help you? I can't just stand aside like that when you're fighting against stuff like that... especially when I know I can do something to help you." Kei insisted.

"Look... I used to have one of those. I know how to survive against them. You had a minute or two of experience: look what it got you." Chris replied, motioning towards the kid's scar.

What did he mean he had one of those...?

Crap, so many questions...

"But now I have that fire! I'm sure I can do something!"

"Do you, really? You can't control it, it'll end up hurting you. I doubt you can even call it now-" The man spoke without thinking, and only caught himself after he made the dare.

The kid was gonna try until he managed to call it, wasn't he?

"Listen, all of you. I want you all to go home, and stay safe. I don't want any of you to get hurt because of me. I wouldn't forgive myself if you did."

Silence filled the room.

Eiji looked at each and everyone of the people in the room. Kei looked almost furious, Yoko looked curious, Kenji was expecting answers. Chris had the most serious expression he'd ever seen of him, but that wasn't saying much.

He lowered and shook his head once. Chris' words rung true in his head. "Guys, let's leave that be." He said.

The three turned towards him, Kei being the fastest. "What?!"

"Let's just leave it all behind and go home. We're clearly powerless here... we don't even know what's going on. How can we be of any help like that?"

"You gotta be joking, dude! The guy saved my life, I owe him! I gotta do something!"

"If you die, will you be able to thank him?"

"Hell yeah! I'll give him back the life he gave me!"

Chris looked at Kei. In fact, everyone looked at him.

... Did he really just say that with a straight face...?

...

"... Are you delusional?! Do you even realize what you're saying?!" Eiji lost his cool. There were so many words behind what he said, if he started talking, he wouldn't stop soon.

"You're the crazy one for thinking I'll just let that go! You're the one who should be understanding, here!" Kei barked back. None of the teens dared interfere.

They knew just how strong of a bond Eiji and Kei had between each other.

It seemed like they were different people when they talked to each other. It was hard to follow... their understanding of each other left so much implied, it was like they had heir own language.

"And you should know that I won't let you give your life away! If I have to kick you back to your house, I will, and be damned sure that you'll stay there!"

Kei got up and faced Eiji. "The life's mine! I'll do whatever I want with it!"

"I'm a part of it, and I won't let you waste it! That's what you owe me!" The taller boy towered over the brunette as he yelled in his face. "You're going back, and you're staying safe!"

The words made Kei shut up, but his teeth remained gritted in defiance. He was just thinking of a retort, is all.

Eiji's rage soon melted away as he heard his partner's unspoken words. Concern was all that remained as he lowered his tone. "Don't let me lose you, man." He put a hand on Kei's shoulder. "You know how mad that'd make me."

The brunette stared him up, and his adrenaline was slowly washed away by Eiji's reason. He guy couldn't exactly throw his life away, like that. Not when his friend was still alive.

He lowered his head and took a step back. "... I'm sorry, dude." He apologized and looked away.

Any thoughts Kenji and Yoko had of disagreeing with him died then, especially when the guy threw a glance their way. "That goes for you two, as well. I don't want to see you guys in danger, either," he said.

Nothing else needed to be said. The two agreed wordlessly, as they looked at each other.

Chris gave a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Eiji. Really."

"We'd just slow you down. It's the least I could do."

"Alright. As I said before, you guys can stay here for a while and rest up before you go back. Again, make yourselves at home. Drinks, food, even games... you name it. I gotta do some stuff, now, I'll be back." The rocker said as he got up and headed for the door.

The teens were left in the room, and silence quickly prevailed.

Each one glanced at each other discreetly as they could. You could practically hear their thoughts, if you paid enough attention. So much was being said wordlessly, it was like their questions were being written on the walls with barely visible paint.

Kenji and Yoko were surely wondering how much the four knew about each other.

* * *

 **Done. See ya.**


	5. Good Times, Bad Times

**Hello. Back with this fic. Disclaimers. Read, enjoy.**

* * *

Alright... another take was done. That was the last one for the day, at last...

After exhaling, Ohatsu went back to her usual demeanor and thanked her fellow actors. Everyone congratulated each other for yet another well done act, and each of them went to their dressing rooms.

After opening the door, she sat on her chair and looked at herself in the big mirror as she opened her can of bonbons...

She always laughed at everyone that acted scared when they saw her eating chocolate. 'Don't you have a diet? Shouldn't you follow your nutritionist?'

Pft... She popped one into her mouth. Not like she had much else to take her mind off her worries.

Sigh...

Another day...

She just hoped Kenichi... or Chris, as it seemed to be what he was called now, was okay.

Hah... that was just like him.

She, herself was called Linda, sometimes... she couldn't blame him.

It'd been a while since she last saw him. Perhaps she'd have the chance to meet him, since they were finally in the same city. They'd been exchanging messages since Chris found out she was coming to Tokyo, but still, it was all work, work, work.

Worst of all, one of his close friends died just the day before. And she still couldn't be there for him.

All because she was way too busy... he probably was, too, however.

Her cellphone vibrated just then.

As expected, it was a message from Chris.

'Hey, how are you?'

'I'm alright. Wbu?'

'Been better. I gotta warn you of something, though.'

Huh...? 'Which would be...?'

'You've read about those acts of terrorism, right?'

'Well, yeah...' She would say that it was obvious that she should be careful of that, but she knew Chris was smarter than that.

'You have a play on the theater which had a blackout in a few days, right? I'm reading that now. Police are saying that those guys are trying to send a message, and therefore won't attack the same place twice... I don't think that's the case. I think they're targeting people and don't care for casualties along their way... you're a very likely target of theirs.'

'But I just got here... I've rarely been to Tokyo, before. How come?'

'Me, too. I've only been to Tokyo once before. But still... I think I was a target. Or rather, my band was a target. I have no idea why, but they are targeting displays of art.'

... But... 'What do you mean?'

'A fire in an art gallery, a blackout in a theater, a sabotage in a rock festival... you can't ignore that pattern.'

Huh... he was right. That couldn't be a coincidence. 'What do you think I should do, then?'

'I don't know, be careful? Stay safe?'

... He was never so inexpressive. He used to be quite eloquent and his wits always seemed to be above him, but now he just looked... tired. She wondered just how rocked his world must have been.

'I'll be fine, you know that.' She replied. She didn't want him to worry about her. The less stress to keep him up at night, the better.

'Ohatsu, you don't get the worst part. Whoever these guys are, they have personas.' Chris answered.

... 'But how?!'

'I have no idea. I'm thinking into this while I'm here. I'll stay in the city for a while until I clear this out, so be safe until I solve this, okay?'

'But Kenichi... I won't let you do this all by yourself.'

'And I won't let you endanger yourself. I'm telling you, this problem is mine to solve.'

'You do know you're in just as much danger as I am, right? I can take care of myself and you know it, let me help you.'

...

...

Chris sighed and shook his head as he paused his jam session once more to read his friend's message.

Stubborn as always... Dammit, Ohatsu.

...

...

'Fine.'

'Alright! Actually, I have an idea.'

'Which would be...?'

'Just wait a few minutes, I'll get back to you shortly.'

Right after pressing the send button for her message to Chris, Ohatsu speed dialed her director's number. After a few rings, she picked.

"Hey, Ohatsu."

"Hello, Gwen. I need you to do me a favor..."

...

...

...

Afternoon period was over at Kishin High.

Another set of boring classes whizzed by Kei's ear. As soon as the bell rang, he closed his eyes and stretched as far back as he could.

He was tired of the torrent of questions thrown his way during that day and the day before. His scar brought faaar too much attention.

What surprised him was the fact that the police, who were the ones supposed to be asking him stuff, were the ones that didn't come after him.

Maybe Chris had something to do with that...?

"Hey man."

When he opened his eyes again, Eiji was standing in front of his desk.

"Hey, dude. What's going on?"

"I don't have practice today, wanna do something?" His friend asked.

Oh, Hell yeah! "Of course!" He shot up from his chair almost immediately. "It's been a while since we hung out together. What do you wanna do, grab a bite?"

"Yep. How about some ramen?"

"No objections here! Lemme just tell Kenji I'll be out today, really quick." Kei said as he whipped out his cellphone.

...

...

'I'll hang out with Eiji, just so you and Yoko know. See ya tomorrow, dawg.'

Kenji read the message and scratched the side of his chin. "Well, looks like Kei's busy today. It's gonna have to be just the three of us. Is that okay with you?" He said as he typed in a 'Sure, later man' without even looking at his phone.

"Ah, it's okay. I'm glad I could get you guys to come with me, thank you a lot..." The short girl said, bowing.

Kenji scratched the back of his head with a grin so misaligned, it clearly told how well he dealt with compliments. Very badly, in case you were wondering. "Don't mention it. We are always happy to make people feel, uh..." Where was he going with that line, again...?

"Less lonely?" Yoko pitched in.

"Yeah, less lonely." The guy finished, unhappy with his words.

Yoko looked at him, then back at the girl before shaking her head with a smile. "What he means is that we're the ones glad to have you with us, Miki."

The girl smiled at the two of them with rosy cheeks. "Thanks, senpai."

Kenji turned his previously weird grin in a more sincere smile.

He'd forgotten that his actions spoke a lot more than his words.

Him and Yoko were asked by the first year, Miki, to go to the advertisement for the play that was going to be held at the Ikebukuro theater, right at its front hall. She was a big fan of the starring actress, Linda Nanakase, and she was going to be there, in the flash, to answer questions and interact with the fans.

The girl was likely having trouble even fitting in her class, seeing how downtrodden she was when she came to them. It felt kind of bad acknowledging the fact that she only talked to them because they were known as the school's band of misfits, but still, one more for the group, they guessed.

"You think if we go now, we'll be able to get closer to Linda?" Kenji asked.

"I don't know. Not many people know about this, it wasn't divulged a whole lot... So we should be able to talk to her." Miki pitched in.

"Awesome. If that's so, you wanna come with us to get something to eat, first? Kenji's treat." Yoko was the one to offer.

"Yoko-" the grey haired taller boy would protest, but the raven haired girl elbowed him. "Ahem... Yeah, you wanna?"

"Um, if it isn't much trouble..."

"Pft. Relax. We're offering, aren't we? Come on, let's go." Yoko took the lead of the three and went ahead. Miki followed shortly behind, while Kenji was left to wonder about his wallet's future.

But hey. It's not like he had better things to spend his money on than his friends. So he quickly gathered himself and went along.

...

...

"Ohatsu, are you sure?"

"I'm positive, Gwen. You heard the plan, I'm the target. And you know how well I can defend myself."

"But still, what about the people?"

"That's where you come in. Few people will be there, I got a few of the security guards responsible for the theater to help us there, and you'll have Chris with you, as well. I'll make sure no one gets hurt, and that we bring these guys' faces to the open."

"How can you be sure there aren't a lot of them? I mean... a fire, a blackout and a sabotage... they'd need a pretty big group to pull that out."

"Or just a few people with a very special power. I know there aren't a lot of people out there with those abilities, and you know how much one person can do with that power."

Gwen remained quiet. She knew how strong Ohatsu was. She was the one that saved her when she thought she was done for, after all.

"Again, they'll go for me, you, Chris and the guards take people outta there, while I deal with whoever attacks me." The light brown haired woman said, her green eyes staring deep into Gwen's dark grey ones.

"... Okay." Gwen, being the shorter of the two, watched as her friend got up from her seat and towered over her. And she wasn't even that short... the actress was just that tall. What was she... 6'0? Most likely.

"See, it's going to be fine. I'm not only doing this for myself, I'm doing this because it's something maybe only we can do something about, okay?" The taller woman cupped Gwen's face in between her hands. "It's up to us. We can't ignore it. If we do, more people may die, just because we sat on our asses and waited. And as much as I need you to stay safe, I really, really need your help with this. Once this is through, I'll do my best to protect you, alright?"

"I know you'll be there for me... I'll never doubt you." Gwen answered, averting her eyes from Ohatsu's gaze.

The actress let go of the writer's face. "You better not!" She told her with the best smile she could offer.

What she didn't know, was that Chris was gonna going to stand and fight alongside her, most likely.

But still, if she felt reassured, nothing else mattered. Everything was going to be alright.

Everything was going to be juuust fine...

...

* * *

 **So, this chapter's done. Maybe you're wondering what's gonna happen, maybe you're not. Maybe you're not even reading the story. Anyway, same as always, critics and opinions there *points down*, Raidou here, approving this message. *thumbs up* Later.**


	6. But Your Luck Runs Out

**Sup. Back with this fic. Hope you enjoy the read. Disclaimers. On with it.**

* * *

Kenji, Yoko and Miki sat by the takoyaki stand near the theater, happily munching on their snacks.

Some more happily than others, actually. The silence was starting to get under the former's skin.

Something needed to be done about that. Or so was what he thought. "So, uh..." he began, before swallowing the last bits that he was still chewing. "Miki. What is this play about...?" He asked nervously.

"It's about an actress and her life where she has to deal with all sorts of lies, including her own. Linda will be the protagonist. I think it'll be amazing to see her impersonating an actress, of all things!" She replied with a smile.

"You really are a fan, huh?" Yoko was the one to ask, this time.

"Yeah! She's so talented and beautiful... she can do anything. She's the reason I wanna be an actress, myself."

"I hope you get to achieve that!" Yoko replied with an enthusiasm Kenji wasn't used to seeing. "You know, me and Beanie here also have an idol like that."

"Oh, really? Who is it?" The girl asked, showing a lot of interest. She was so excited, Yoko figured Miki didn't even notice she'd raised the tone of her voice.

"You ever heard of Chris Harris?"

"Oh, that guy from that band... their songs are kinda scary, I don't really like them... is he your idol?"

Yoko couldn't hold back the laughter. Scary songs... that girl was too adorable. Even Kenji had a grin on his face.

"Yep. The guy is really cool, too, we met him just the other day." The raven haired girl continued.

"Really? You guys met him?"

"Yeah. We even got to play with him."

"That's awesome! I love it when people you look up to care that much for their fans." Miki said.

Kenji knew Yoko was kinda good with kids, but it seemed she did a good job at being a senpai, as well, even though she was always quiet and reserved. He'd like to say he knew what went on inside of the quiet girl's head all the time, but he didn't. And he didn't think he ever would. In fact, girls in general were a bit too complicated for him.

Then again... Miki seemed kinda like the little girl type... fresh outta middle school. He didn't know why it was so hard for him to change his standard demeanor, even though he was almost certain he could do a kinda good job, too...

Oh, that's why. There was an 'almost' and a 'kinda' in that sentence.

... He was just not fit for talking to girls, was he?

Yoko kept talking to Miki, and Kenji eventually pitched in for a few, brief comments. The small talk continued, the first year's smile growing with every minute.

...

...

Eiji glanced at Kei, who was wolfing down the contents of his bowl.

Before the brunette could notice that, he popped a question. "So, how were you yesterday?"

"Ah, you know" Kei briefly paused to speak to his friend. "This is a freaking people magnet." He said, pointing towards the stitches. "And it doesn't even hurt that much... it's not a big deal, really. People don't need to keep asking me stuff, jeez. What about you, dude. How've you been holdin' up?"

"Same as usual, only people asked me about you, as well." Not quite, actually. People were talking about these weird rumors about the incidents, saying how supernatural causes were involved. Well, they were right, but no one had really concrete proof. Even videos that were taken during the first three incidents were being ruled out as pranks... only blurs, indistinguishable pictures were taken.

"Oh, I see." Kei replied before looking back at his bowl and continuing his meal.

Eiji looked at him go. There was no awkward silence between the two, they could spend hours in silence and neither of them would be bothered by it.

He was glad he could hang out with his friend, again.

Even happier he could distract him from doing anything rash.

He was planning on keeping him from being on his own, lest he went and put himself in danger, again. He knew that they were very important to each other, so long as he skipped a few days of practice and didn't leave Kei to himself, they'd be gold.

Ensuring safety while having fun with your best friend.

Pretty good deal, right?

With the course of action already planned, he went back to eating his ramen, again.

All he had to do was stay away from danger...

...

...

Chris paced back and forth, restless. "Okay... it's gonna be alright..." He muttered, trying to convince himself.

"Kenichi, relax. You don't work well when you're nervous..." Ohatsu said, sitting on her chair with her legs crossed.

"Oh, you think I wanted to be nervous? If I am, it means that something is wrong with the whole situation..." The man answered, as Gwen looked back and forth between the two of them.

The actress narrowed her eyes at the rocker. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Chris." She said, with a bit of venom in her voice.

The man sighed as the director and writer bit her lip before speaking up. "You're sure this is what we're gonna do, right?" She turned towards Ohatsu.

"Yes, indeed. You, Chris and the security will take people outta there while I deal with whoever crosses my way. It's that simple." The actress said, to which Chris replied with a blank look.

Little did she know...

"Alright." Ohatsu said as she got up from her chair and stretched her arms up, before reaching to the stand by the side of the table in the dressing room...

To pick up a Katana concealed in a light blue sheath.

"You know, Gwen... after this, the play is probably going to get cancelled for good. I promise I'll make it up for you and the others, somehow, okay?"

Chris looked at the young writer and saw her nod, with a not so pleased expression. That was probably out of concern for Ohatsu, however.

"And Kenichi..." she put the Katana down on the table and turned towards the rocker. And just as she did with her weapon, her confident, dauntless expression was also put down, as her chin and eyes lowered a bit.

"Putting everything aside for a moment... I'm sorry we had to meet up again under such circumstances. I really, really wish we could spend some time together and hang out without a care in the world. I'm sure you must be going through a lot right now..." She approached the rocker and grabbed a hold of his hand.

Upon feeling her hand on his, Chris raised his head and looked at her, before letting out a laugh. "I'm the one who should be saying that, you know. You were the one who were all "I'm gonna do this" and stole my thunder. But still, despite aaaall of that..." He rolled his eyes playfully. "I'm happy to see you again." He pulled her for a hug.

It'd been so long since they'd seen each other like that, up close. Sometimes, they'd see each other's faces in articles, in the internet, even on TV in rare cases. But nothing beat meeting up like that.

Gwen watched the two and fixed her glasses, a bit nervous. She knew of Kenichi, Ohatsu told her about him and the others. She never understood their relationship. Sure, she was close to the actress, confided in her, and all that, but...

The way she could see the two felt about each other... They weren't even lovers. And yet...

She had never been able to feel that close to anyone, even in previous relationships. In fact, she rarely felt that way about her parents. To see that kind of feeling in the flash...

... She should have been jotting down what she was seeing. The interactions in her plots would grow exponentially if she stuck to those two.

And thinking about her stories would also drown that hint of jealousy she was feeling.

Because right now, she kinda felt like she was third wheeling, even though she knew she wasn't.

Kenichi was the one to break away from the embrace. They've had their wordless talk, for the moment.

"Okay, let's get this plan running." He said to the two women in the room.

...

...

"This really isn't that big of a line, is it..." Kenji said, looking at the few people in front of them.

Maybe they didn't need to go that early... they'd get a chance to talk to Linda, regardless...

What the Hell was he thinking about? He had to remember that-

"Still, we had a pretty fun time. Right, guys?" Yoko vocalized the boy's next thoughts.

... That.

The shorter girl looked up to the female guitarist and nodded. "Thank you, senpai!" She said, to which Yoko replied with a nod and smile of her own, which... Kenji had never really seen, to be honest.

And he was kinda glad he did. Seeing a warm smile like that on her face was a nice contrast to the usual neutral expressions, deadpans and half, distant smiles.

... A really nice contrast.

Where was his camera? That was rare, he needed to catch that...

... And then he broke out of his goofy trance before she noticed he'd been gawking at her.

"Don't mention it." He said, half a beat too late, he could figure out as much.

The line kept diminishing. Their turn would come soon.

"Uh, Kenji, can you keep our places in the line? I kinda have to go over there..." Yoko asked him.

Without batting an eye, he answered. "Sure."

"C-can I go with you, senpai?" Miki spoke up, a bit too excited, Kenji thought. The beanie wearing teen looked at her, but then remembered...

Girls, right?

"Of course! Let's go." The older girl said, and the two left to find their way around the theater.

...

...

"No problem. I wish you and your wife well." Ohatsu said, handing the booklet back to the now happy man in front of her.

It seemed his wife was working herself out, and the one thing that cheered her was the way she could relive her golden drama days by watching the new stars rising. Such new star was Ohatsu, herself, and she was more than glad to be a part of what kept the woman going. The smile on her face was legitimate.

But just because it was genuine, it didn't mean that there wasn't more to the way she felt.

She didn't need to do much to shake the thoughts aside, though. Now that she thought about it, the event looked more like a book signing than anything else. Lucky her, Gwen was not only a director, she also had books to sign. She must admit, throwing together an event like that in such a short notice could go... left. As in not very right.

Don't you dare say a plan of hers could go wrong. Everything was calculated, she was counting on the fact that Gwen could bring her work, as well.

... Yeah.

Speaking of the writer, there she was. "Hey, Ohatsu... Chris is kinda worried..."

The next in line then stepped up to her stand... chair... desk.

Shut up.

It was a young man, not far past twenty. He looked silently at her while Gwen talked.

And she immediately heard the stirring when she looked into the guy's... rather oddly colored eyes.

"Gwen, it's time. Warn security, get outta here."

"Well, Chris felt that, as well, I was about to get on that, but... He said to tell you to watch out, because there are two." Gwen finished, before hurrying over to the guards, composedly as she could.

Ohatsu then turned towards the man before her. "Hello, mister." She greeted him.

...

...

Yoko entered her stall, but didn't even have time to get ready before she heard a bang on the wall that made her jump.

Holy crap, what the Hell was that?

Another bang made her leave her stall, startled. She saw another girl leaving the restroom, her face white as a sheet. She was mumbling senseless stuff about cursed toilets... she didn't hear a lot.

Where was Miki, though...?

Another bang, and now she could make out the girl's voice, if barely. She never heard her pained voice before.

She immediately ran to the source of the sound. She was in trouble, dammit!

She reached for the handle of the stall she assumed the girl was in, and made little effort to pry it open...

Mostly because the door went flying back at her face and knocked her down.

...

...

Kenji looked at his phone.

Geez, where were these girls...

He looked around... that one blond guy walking towards the restrooms...

Was that Chris?!

Dammit, he had to stand there and save their place in the line... their were just second, now...

He then saw the glasses wearing writer from the stand next to Linda's approaching him.

"Hello... I apologize, but you must get out of here... I don't have time to explain..."

... Uh...

What?

"Excuse me?" When he looked behind himself, security guards were also talking to people, and some of them were already leaving.

"Trust me, it's for your own safety... we're having an emergency simulation, right now." The writer tried to explain.

"But why aren't the sirens ringing? What about people in the restrooms? Why is Linda still sat th-"

He then heard the sound of something cutting something else, and froze in place.

He leaned to the side and looked past the writer, to see Linda's desk split dead in half, and a katana in the actress' hands. It seemed she'd just slashed at the man in front of her...!

"... No time to explain, let's hurry!" Gwen told him, and this time he didn't object. Some people were already out of the theater, while the very few that still remained made their way out of the hall fast as possible, probably by the guards' orders.

The two began to make their dash out of the hall as the temperature dropped steeply...

But they couldn't make it out, as a wall of ice raised itself on the door, closing it in front of them.

...

...

Chris heard the gasps and yells coming from the girl's restroom, and wasted no time trying to open the door.

... Which was locked.

No matter, though. One kick, and it was-

... Okay, two kicks and it was down, and he bore witness to a highly unlikely scene...

Okay, that was a persona, alright.

... Was that raven haired girl Yoko, though?

Regardless, he made a dash towards the short master of the blasted puppet.

He didn't care if she was a little girl.

...

* * *

 **Aaaand done. Same as always, even though you prolly won't read this, critics and opinions in the review box below, I am Raidou the 16th and I approve this message. *thumbs up* See ya later.**

 **Oh, and by the way, if you don't already, you should really read Persona 3: Fallen Messiah, and Persona 3: Blood Lust, by Nigtly 7. They are on fire, right now.**


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